Tickets Now Available
Friday October 2
7pm Friday Night Frights (Doors 6pm)
Saturday October 3
12pm Live Action Shorts (Doors 11am)
2pm Animated Shorts (Doors 1:30pm)
4pm Documentary Shorts (Doors 3:30pm)
All tickets include complimentary beverages & snacks.
WHEN
The 2nd Annual Festival will be held October 2 & 3, 2026
WHERE
Pine Grove Community House
225 Laneda Ave, Manzanita, OR 97130
WHAT
Short films that highlight the unique landscapes, cultures, stories and talent of the Pacific Northwest.
The Manzanita Film Festival is dedicated to celebrating the rich cinematic heritage of the Pacific Northwest region.
A two-day in-person event held in the picturesque coastal town of Manzanita, Oregon, this festival aims to showcase films that capture the essence, culture, crafts, and stories unique to the Pacific Northwest with a special consideration for the Oregon coast.
By highlighting the creative achievements of filmmakers from our region, we aim to foster community pride, inspire creativity, and provide a platform for local filmmakers to share their work with a broader audience.
Scenes from the 2025 Festival
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2026 SPONSORS
Thank you to our 2026 sponsors for supporting the festival!
BECOME A Sponsor
Help us bring short films and filmmakers to Manzanita for the 2026 Film Festival. To learn more about sponsorship opportunities, contact us at manzanitafilmfestival@gmail.com.
TEAM
FESTIVAL DIRECTORS
JUSTIN GRAHAM
Justin has been heavily involved in the Portland film and animation community as a VFX lead and artist on five feature films at Laika Studios and more recently on Henry Selick's film Wendell and Wild for Netflix. Justin got his start in film at George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch and Industrial Light and Magic in the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition to his VFX work he has also been active in the film festival world. His short film As Seen On TV premiered at the Portland Festival of Cinema, Animation and Technology at OMSI last summer and won an award for Best Oregon Short Film. He is working with PFCAT to screen films for entry into this year's festival. He has similarly been involved with the San Francisco Film Festival, the Brooklyn Sci Fi Film festival and ran the Short Attention Span Film Festival years ago.
PAMELA STATZ
Pamela grew up in Wisconsin and attended UW Madison. She has worked in web development, media and advertising for Lucasfilm, WIRED, Nike, and Wieden+Kennedy, as well as numerous freelance clients including Gloria Steinem and PBS Frontline/WORLD. Pamela is the author of the Portland-based thriller Thorn City (Ooligan Press), and has seen Point Break one hundred and thirty eight times.
FESTIVAL JUDGES
CHRIS BURD
Chris Burd is a digital marketing professional in the cybersecurity industry by day, and a film lover by night. His most notable acting credit was Thorin, King of the Dwarves, in the 1986 Bernards Junior High production of The Hobbit — a performance praised exclusively by his mother. Realizing his talents were better suited to the role of spectator and casual critic, Chris has since enjoyed watching and discussing films that make him think (Donnie Darko), cry (The Shawshank Redemption), or shiver (The Shining).
He splits his time between Portland and Manzanita, where he can be found cruising the coast in Big Red, his VW Vanagon, with his wife Becky and their two effervescent Labrador Retrievers. When not watching movies, Chris enjoys making breakfast burritos, tackling the Sunday crossword, and exploring the trails and beaches of the Pacific Northwest.
MARIA FERY
Maria Fery is a Roto Paint Lead at Laika Studios and has been part of Oregon's visual effects and animation community for over a decade. A graduate of The Art Institute of Portland in 2014, she has contributed to several acclaimed animated feature films, including Kubo and the Two Strings, Missing Link, and Wendell & Wild for Netflix, and is currently working on Laika's upcoming feature film, Wildwood. A lifelong Oregonian and member of the Visual Effects Society, Maria is passionate about visual effects, post-production, and the collaborative process of bringing stories to life on screen through animation and filmmaking.
JORGE HEREDIA
Jorge Heredia grew up in Oakland, California. In his early adulthood he split his time between studying film and toll collecting for the California Troll Authority. It was a chance encounter with three billy goats that finally steered him into working in the film industry full time. He is big, strong, handsome, and can probably throw a football over those mountains. He is a senior visual effects artist who has worked with Laika, Disney, and DreamWorks Animation. He is an avid lover of film and a champion of the theater going experience. Also, he is really big and strong and so, so smart, like really smart and stuff.
JESSICA OUTLAW
Jessica Outlaw is an Adobe experience researcher who studies the creative process. In her previous role as the founder of The Extended Mind, she studied and developed virtual reality experiences that facilitate embodiment and social presence across distances. Her virtual reality app 'Teachers Lens' won an Oculus Launchpad award from Facebook (now Meta). She lives in Portland, OR and loves to forage clams on the Oregon coast in the spring and collect mushrooms in the forest in the autumn.
MARK SHAPIRO
Mark Shapiro is a Director and Producer for Backlot Docs. Prior to co-directing the feature documentaries A Nobody From Somewhere (coming late 2026) and DOWNWIND (2023) and the short documentary The Invisible Enemy (2024), Mark headed marketing for LAIKA's five Oscar-nominated features: Coraline, ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls, Kubo and the Two Strings and Missing Link. Before LAIKA, he managed publicity for Nike Basketball and Nike Community Affairs. He also served as a Mentor in Publicity and Marketing for SxSW Film. Mark curates film programming at festivals around the world. A native of Seattle, Mark attended Emerson College in Boston and received his BA (English) from Colorado College. He completed post-graduate education studies at Lewis & Clark College. Mark is Executive Producer of the forthcoming feature documentary WIND-FALL (2026), about the traumatic brain injury suffered by world champion kiteboarder Brandon Scheid.
PETER SORG
Peter Sorg is an international Director of Photography and Lighting Cameraman specializing in world-class stop-motion animation. After honing his skills on European, UK and US commercial campaigns and short films, he transitioned into feature filmmaking alongside the industry's most legendary directors. His most notable credits include serving as DP on Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie and Henry Selick’s Wendell & Wild, as well as contributing to Coraline, Corpse Bride, Aardman's Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (dir. Sam Fell), Early Man (dir. Nick Park), and Laika's upcoming feature, Wildwood (dir. Travis Knight). Originally from Germany, Peter now lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife and loves spending off-hours kayaking and riding vintage enduro motorcycles as often as possible.
Motion graphic and social post designs by Kranbox. Logo design by Kaci Smith.
2026 SUBMISSIONS CLOSED
Now actively seeking short documentary, live-action, or animated films that are made in, about or by filmmakers of Oregon and the greater Pacific Northwest.
DEADLINES
Regular Deadline: June 1
Final Deadline: July 15
Notification Date: Sept 3
GET IN TOUCH
For inquiries, volunteer opportunities, or sponsorship details, please get in touch!
